New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-05-29
LIFE IN A FLAT
THE EXPERIENCES OF A HoUsE.HuNrEE

6e0cutb roper
Something Ii TO be said of the dat hired girl TIN
Prudences conviction that Dat life Il not good for tl
breadwinner In the kitchen She argues that its tcnd
ENJOY is to make her disconnected with her placepros
yded her mistress does not pay the highest wsges In the
building The opportunities for socabilty among scr
wants in apartment house are Of course abundant
Your girls become acquainted with the girls IN the
fats on the Same floor before you arc fairly moved In
Pretty the girls in the fats underneath up Of
gu evenings IL they little backward In making
friendly advances the girls In the fats overhead come
down. Then your girls return these calls and their
communion is continued. No objection is to be urged
against these social nterchanges which do much to
brighten the lives Of the girls, save that In too many
instances they lead to the unpleasant result which has
been mentioned-some OF the girls become dscontented
IL happens in this way: Bridget X, the cook in a Fat
the third door (the occupants OF which have $4,000
year to spen chatting with Mary Ann Y. the cook
fiat the fourth floor 1.-THE occupants OF which have
income of but $1,000 year,
shave just been after changing my months wages"
says Bridget for draft send to the old folks in Ire
land"
Naturally enough Mary Ann is curious to learn what
the amount of the draft was.
Twenty dollars" answers Bridget.
"sure, that's better than I'm doing" remarks Mary
Ann in sober tones at only get sixteen month"
sixteen. is it 3" excaims Bridget. well. you ought
to be getting as much Sure, there no moro
to cook for in fat than there is In yours"
Now, Bridget may be worth two such girls az Mary
Ann, but still the iron has entered Mary AIMS SOUL She
feels that she cannot be happy look Bridget In tho
face until she has had her raised 81 month So
presently she asks advance Possibly her mistress
avoid friction accedes to her request But likely az
she refuses, gently but firmly remaring that BIG
is all she afford to pay and that at that figure she
has no trouble in securing the help she needs Mary Ann
is disappointed perhaps regarding her mstresss words
a snub. The consequence is the girl either gives q
oil
going about her tasks in q sulen spirit.
There are indeed many exceptions to this rule, you
were the point of reminding Not few servants
are sensible enough to know when they have good
place and shrewd enough to let well enough alone and
not TO dsquieed because OF their acquaintance
receives little higher pay am fond of repeating when
this point is being considered, the story which Mrs
Frank Gregory once told me about her cook:
Rachel had been with me for more than a year; had
given entire satisfaction and little SO Christ
mas after handing her pretty gift, said You have
been faithful and efficient, Rachel since yon have
been with u.s. that am going to raise your wages 81
month"; beginning with the year. Well the GIRL In
stead OF evncng any qualification at this announcement
actually ared up and remarked to In heated falsetto
tones: Mrs. Gregory when I'm expecting any raise OF
wages I'll let you know. don't want no ~ month
more and hope you won't insist upon my taking it.
know my mind. Mrs. Gregory, and I've got tongue In
my head and at any time amt suited with the wages
paid me- I'll tell you etc, ETC. The result was that
really had to exert myself to calm Rachel assured her
that had no intention of hurting her feelings and that
II she felt to accepting more wages would not
urge them upon her She thanked me- and retired from
her presence somewhat Observation-Disclosures 81 lmontn
richer than expected to be-"
To be sure the dwelling house that shelters but
single family exempt from the annoyance in ques
ton. Girls find their way into anothers kitchens
and compare notes touching wages and become prey
discomfort and ripen for months warning when they
dont live in fats Granted All mean is that there Is
much better chance In fats for the development of this
particular hinrance the solution Of the yexed prob
lem Of domestic service than there Is in dwelling
house Flat life has its advantages. numerous and sub
stantal of which have been noted in these pages
But it also has its disadvantages, numerous and sub
stanta and among them Is 10 be reckoned the unhappy
not say demoralzing effect which it sometimes has on
servants Is there remedy friend OF ours who lives
In fat thinks that she has discovered Calling
upon once several years she discovered Prudence
bemOanlng the loss OF girl who suddenly awoke-or
rather had been awakenedto the consciousness that
justice herself and decent respect for the opinion OF
the stories below required that she should no
longer do our cooking for SIG month.
That is all the girl is WORTH" sighed Prudence; she
is fair TO mddling cook and nothing OF counsel
shall let her but hate the trouble Of hunting up aud
breaking in girl But let cook in fiat get $50
month and the chances that all the Others mat
ter what their capacity experience will expect that
pay"
"Inever pay but SIS, and RAJ ely change servants"
said our friend In tnctured with reproof. Il
manage In this way The two girls now in my employ
have been with me three years. When engaged them
said You have half your evenings every week to
yourselves and Sunday afternoons; and am perfectly
wiling that you should receive calls from your friends
living outside. But must insist that you shall not re-
ceive nor make calls girls in this fat building am
not acquainted with anybody any of the other apart
aud fhnra DC nxyhy vOu al
events, II engage you you must do as wish In this
matter The girls agreed to my terms ana have never
had any trouble from the source you mention"
That is our friends remedy. must confess do not
think much OF it, l should be apprehensye that girls
would to resent having entered into such an agree
ment that their tenure OF Office would be as uncertain
as under a different policy.
Since began write this paper my attention mas been
called article in The Epoch on fats in which occurs
the following:
Tho reason why ordinary fiat property does not now
pay In NewYork because there Is much competition
reasonable demands the part OF tenants fiat tenant
Of today wants coal for the ranges and pretty much
their care of the apartments and IL you remonstraa
with them they tell you that they MIL go somewhere else
very large his worry is great and with the
competition he daily feels growing stronger his lot Is not
a happy one by any means.
We imagine that the fat tenant will be amused
in case he is indignant at this attempt to make
martyr OF the fat landlord The landlord does not at
tempt TO grind the face of the tenant Oh no. Accord
ing to The Epoch his face is the gndee and the tenant
yeritable blood suckets the grinder All that the land
lord asks OF the tenant and he asks humbly is rent
The tenant on other hand is continually waylayns
the landlord sterny demanding coal for the ranges and
pretty much everything but beefsteak" The landlord
Is careful to keep the building in good repair frequently
working all night and Sundays with his coat off TO meet
wishes OF the tenant Tenants on the other hand arc
careless in their OF the apartments" II the tenant
demonstrates with the landlord the landlord bursts into
tears promises upon his Blended knees to take good
heed TO the remonstrance. But II the landlord remon
strates with the tenant the responds: will go
somewhere else and leave your rooms empty" One OF
these pictures accurate the other and each OF
them marks the limit of navigable nonsense" In some
Of the better class OF apartment houses coal is furnished